BethJ

Does anybody know the date that Swan Lake premeired? It is a Petipa ballet correct? That would place it at the late 1800s. So Mel's earlier statement: "that the swan was very popular as a design motif in the 1875-1885 era in Russia, largely as a tribute to Ludwig's championship of absolutism!" Would probably explain why the princess and the maidens were turned into swans in the first place. It simply was a very trendy animal at that time period... Any thoughts on this? Beth

I just finished reading Francis Mason's I Remember Balachine which interviews most of the people that had significant contact with Balachine throughout his life. One of the points that was made by many of the the dancers interviewed was that Balanchine seemed to have to ability to know exactly what each dancer could do. He had an uncanny ability to pick out steps that they thought were impossible, but in the end proved to be perfect for the specific dancer. while Balanchine definitely had ceratin women that inspired him most, it almost seems that every dancer he choreographed for provided him with inspiration. Another point that was reiterated throughout the book was that Balachine would often change steps within the roles if the ones that were there did not suit the dancer. Apparently several key parts were changed to accomodate Suzanne Farrell's bad knees! Beth

Every year all the women in my family climb in the car and head down to the Detroit Opera House for the production of the Nutcracker. We have been doing this for about 15 years now, and I have seen some of the worst behavior! First there was to one year that the couple in front of us kissed during the entire performance, then there was the woman behind us who just couldn't seem to manage to stop burping...it went on through the whole show...plus it always seems that the woman with the largest hair gets seated in front of me, and then I am resorted to becoming the annoying person that cannot keep their head in one place Beth

There is a wonderful series of fiction books called "Satin Slippers" I'm not sure who it is by, but it is all about a girl named Leah who goes to the San Francisco Ballet Academy. There are about 20 books in the series and they are really good.

Scottie, unfortunately I am going to have to disagree with your statement about eating disorders no longer being acceptable in the dance world. in some ways it is almost worse than gymnastics because it is adults dancing and not children, as far as professional companies go. most dancers in companies do not have figures, as the normal woman would, there are no curves. Eating disorders are extremely common for a large part because dancers spend an unnatural amount of time looking at themselves in the mirror each day. the time spent in class is spent studying your line and how your body looks. amy person would be selfconcious about their looks after that much examination. Also, some companies and dance schools still have "weigh ins" for their dancers and those that do not meet their required weight are often put on probation. beth